Moon Boy, Vol. 1: Volume 1

I don't usually like shoujo/shounen manga. Their plots usually lack depth and drag on way too long (To Kill a Mockingbird has more value in one book than 23 volumes of Naruto or Fruits Basket or whatever) This book's premise intrigued me, though, so I got the 1st volume on a lark. It's firmly a shoujo manga (with shounen cross-over appeal...there's some cool looking fight scenes and bloodyness in here). But it has some interesting plot-twists, and it's fun. I think the art style deserves special mention. It's really dynamic, not just some bland copycat stuff. Combined with the endearing "yay on getting your book published!" messages from fans in the back, and sketched fan art, it gives the book a sort of home-made, non-commercial feel...commercial as the plot and pacing is. Maybe it's because it's Korean. It's not as deep as good seinen or classic manga. But if you want a fun fantastical adventure with schoolgirl romance, it seems recommendable. It's like, as a person who never reads shoujo manga, I hold this in my hands and think "This is probably better than other shoujo manga out there." I'm definately getting the 2nd volume. Oh, and despite a lull, it's been picked up by a new publisher who's putting out volumes 4 and 5 this Fall, so it will be continued. The only bad thing is that it could use more "moe" and female characters. But the average reader needn't worry about this, only the losers out there.